Passive House Retreat for Little Compton

As the years go by, it’s interesting to see the same innovators pushing the envelope in new ways. For instance, ZeroEnergy Design, a design firm that we mentioned with the net-zero energy Truro Home and solar-powered English Residence, and Aedi Construction, a builder that we mentioned with the LEED certified 53 Standish Street, are working together on this handsome Passive House retreat in Little Compton, Rhode Island.

The owners, Pierre Valette and Hilary Illick, together with their four kids, plan to use the home as a getaway for family gathering. When complete, it’ll have about 1,200 square feet of space.

To meet the exacting standards of the Passive House program, the home will be built tightly and efficiently with R40 walls, an R40 slab, and an R70 roof. Also, with high performance windows and a design that optimizes solar gain, the owners won’t need much more than a mini heating system and a heat recovery ventilator.

When done, this Rhode Island Passive House should use about a tenth of the energy for heating as is used in a conventionally constructed home.